Things That Go Past
by SSA James
Summary: 30 year old Tori Vega finds herself in trouble when her secret is about to be revealed to the friends she hasn't seen in nearly 15 years. Rating subject to change
1. Prologue

"Heya, Tori." Andre said, sitting at the lunch table next to the pretty brunette.

"Hi, Andre." Tori greeted halfheartedly, looking off into whatever. Andre snapped his fingers in front of her face.

"You okay, girl?"

Tori nodded, but Andre saw through her, raising a skeptical eyebrow. Tori sighed.

"Sort of," She mumbled the next words, so Andre couldn't even hear them.

"What was that?"

"I'm leaving Hollywood Arts." She said, more clearly.

"What?" Andre said, looking like he had just been slapped. "Why? Because of what happened at the party?" Tori blushed at the moment mentioned; Andre and Tori had promised not to say anything about that.

"No," She said. It was sort of a lie, sort of the truth. "I just...don't want to be here."

"I thought you liked it." Andre said, as if she would suddenly think, "Oh, hey, he's right. Guess I'm staying!"

"I did. I'm just not comfortable here anymore."

"Well, we'll all still hang around, right?" Andre asked, hoping for any silver lining on this shit covered cloud.

"Wrong," Tori corrected. "I'm going to live with my Aunt in San Francisco." Tori looked at Andre, in case he was going to say something. When he didn't, she picked up her bag and stood up. "I have to go clean out my locker. I'll see you later."

* * *

"You want anymore?" Aunt Susan offered the plate of cookies. Tori shook her head. Her eyes hurt from crying and her face felt puffy.

"So your mom never did tell me why you came here. I mean, I know you're knocked up, obviously," Aunt Susan said, nodding to Tori's still flat stomach. "But you could've stayed home."

"I didn't want the baby's dad to know." Tori said, looking out at the rain beating the window.

"Well, why not?"

"He's an amazing musician. He doesn't need a kid screwing up his dreams." Tori stated, flatly.

"So are you, Tori." Aunt Susan said, standing up to wash the dishes. "You're a great kid. That baby's lucky."

-8 months later-

Tori felt sore, disgusting, and amazingly happy all at once. She glanced over at Trina who was, for the first time ever, not talking about herself.

"Hey, baby." Trina cooed. She looked at her younger sister, lying in the hospital bed. Trina handed the baby off to her and smiled at the sight of them. "What's his name?" She asked.

"Dante Harrison." Tori said, looking at the sleeping baby.

-2 years later-

Andre, Jade, Beck, Cat, and Robbie had all graduated.

Cat and Robbie had gotten married barely a week after. Cat began acting and Robbie became a stand up comedian.

Jade and Beck both became actors, but had broken up long _before _graduation.

Andre got many label offers, but chose to stay in school. He went on tour after graduating; he was an instant success.

After graduating from Lincoln High School in San Fransisco, Tori decided to move back to LA. Tori began writing stories, but the only person that heard them was little Dante. Tori became a waitress at a nice cafe, making just enough to support herself and her son.

But, honestly, she was happy.

18 year old Tori sat on the couch in her living room. She was completely exhausted. It was her first day off in forever, and she was taking advantage of it.

"You wanna watch some tv?" She asked her 2 year old son. It was amazing how much Dante looked like his dad, with warm brown skin, dark brown hair, and cute dark eyes.

"Yus!" Dante said, excitedly. 'Yes' was one of the only words he knew how to say clearly. Unfortunately, 'daddy' was also on that list.

"Well, let's see what's on." Dante climbed into his mother's lap, excitedly, making her laugh. The laughing immediatly stopped when Tori saw what face was gracing her tv.

Andre Harris.

Tori switched the channels, quickly, and looked at her son. Of course, he paid no attention to the channel change. He was content watching Elmo sing.

But he wouldn't be that way forever.


	2. Years Later

"Mom?" Tori Vega looked up from her desk to see the dark haired, caramel skinned boy enter the apartment.

"Hey, sweetie." She greeted, kissing her son's cheek, "How was school?"

"Fine," Dante Vega wiped his mother's lip gloss off his face and took a soda from the fridge.

"Learn anything interesting?" Tori asked.

"Nope," The lack of her son's normal sarcasm shocked her. She put down the apple she had been about to bite into to give him a stern look.

"What do you want?" She asked.

"Why, Mother, why would you ever think that I wanted anything but your love and care?" Tori raised an eyebrow and Dante sighed melodramatically. "I want to this musical exhibit downtown. Mark already got tickets. Andre Harris is gonna be there and everything." Tori felt her stomach drop at Andre's name.

"I didn't know you liked Andre Harris." Tori said, hiding her shock well. She was an actress, after all. Even if she hadn't _actually _acted in years.

"Like? Mom, he's like my hero." The fourteen year old gave his mother a pleading look.

"I don't know, Dante."

"Please, Mom." When she turned, he was giving her the sad eyes and she just couldn't say no.

"As long as your room's clean." Dante looked surprised at first, but then jumped up in victory.

"Yes!" He hugged his mother and did a stupid looking "happy dance" which made Tori laugh despite the threat of her lunch coming back up.

"And, I'm driving you there." Dante nodded, but otherwise didn't acknowledge her.

* * *

"You'll call me when you're ready to go home?" Tori asked, gripping the steering wheel.

"Yes, Mom." Dante said, rolling his eyes and opening the car door.

"Wait," Tori got out of the car, walking around to hug her son. Dante had been taller than Tori as of a year ago, but it still made her sad to think he was growing up so fast.

"Can I go now?" Dante whined.

"Sure." Tori laughed, watching as her son crossed the street into the large multipurpose building.

Tori checked the time and decided to get a drink at the gas station around the corner. Grabbing her purse and locking the car, Tori walked silently on the side walk.

Walking into the small, dingy store, Tori waved to the cashier, Cam, who had been friends with Dante for years.

She took her time getting a coffee, being picky about what she put in. The bell over the door rang, but Tori paid no mind, working on picking out a doughnut.

"Oh my god!" Tori heard Cam say, "Can I get your autograph?" Tori didn't really listen until she heard a familiar laugh.

"Sure," Said the all too familiar voice. "What's your name?" Cam introduced himself and Tori peaked over the racks of chips to see the shock of bright red hair.

"Uh, Ms. Tori?" Cam said as he spied Tori hiding. The woman at the counter turned and Tori tried to duck out of sight, but ended up falling and making a lot of noise.

"Are you okay, ma'am?" Cat Sharpio said, coming around to help Tori up. Tori noted that she was, indeed, pregnant like all the articles in supermarket tabloids stated.

Cat's eyes widened as she took in Tori's face. "TORI?" Cat hugged Tori tightly, as if she hadn't been out of contact with her friend for 15 years.

"Heyyy, Cat." Tori said, her eyes shifted to Cam who was watching the two women curiously.

"How are you? You look amazing!" Cat asked, excitedly. "Are you married? Do you have kids?" Tori was almost comforted by the fact that Cat hadn't changed from her thousand-words-a-minute self.

Before Tori could even answer Cat yelled, "OH! Robbie's in the car, come on, he'd _love _to see you." Tori tried to protest, but Cat dragged her out, saying "C'mon!"

She opened the door of an expensive looking car, sticking her head inside quickly, and yelling "Robbie! Look who I found!"

Tori watched as Robbie exited the car. Tori was glad to see that he, like Cat, hadn't changed that much, still looking nerd-ish and fluffy haired.

"Tori?" He said, a smile on his face. "Where have you been? We all thought you dropped of the face of the earth."

"Oh, Tori! You should come with us!" Cat said, "We live like five minutes from here."

"I don't kn-" Tori started,

"Please please please." Cat begged. Tori sighed.

"I'm parked around the corner. I'll follow you over."

"Yay!"

* * *

Tori was in awe of the large Sharpio house. The imposing structure made her small apartment seem...ridiculous.

"What do you think?" Cat asked, getting out of the car.

"It's amazing." Cat squealed and grabbed Tori's hand, dragging her into the house. Cat pulled her through the maze of rooms, finally pushing her onto the overstuffed couch in what Tori guessed was the living room.

Robbie sat next to Cat on a couch opposite of Tori and the couple just looked at her like she could give the answers to life.

"So?" Cat prompted.

"Sooo?" Tori said. Cat rolled her eyes.

"What's going on with your life, silly."

"Oh," Tori said, "Well, I'm still single," She showed of her left hand, which only sported a metal and stone ring that Dante had made for her the year before in art. "I'm a waitress slash amateur writer. And I have a son, Dante."

"A son?" Cat and Robbie said together.

"How old?" Robbie asked. This was the question Tori was afraid of.

"He'll be fifteen in a couple of months." Tori said, ringing her hands together.

"Is that why you left Hollywood Arts?"

"Uhm," Tori looked between her old friends, deciding there was no point in lying. "Yeah. Yeah, it was."

"Why would you leave just because you were pregnant?" Cat asked, like this was ridiculous. Which, to her, it was. "It's not like we'd hate you. We're your friends."

"It's not that." Tori said. "I couldn't let Andre give up everything." She realized what she said and covered her mouth, willing the words to be unsaid again.

"_Andre_?" Robbie said, skeptical.

"He's Andre's son, too?" Cat asked, "You guys were never...dating or anything, though."

Tori shook her head, "No, we weren't. It was just one time. At Jade's party." Trying to switch the subject, she asked, "So where's Rex?"

"He's sleeping, with Calvin." Robbie said, waving it off. Another bit of information Tori had picked up from reading in the grocery line: Calvin was the Sharpio's five year old son. "Why didn't you tell us?"

"Andre would find out."

"So, he should know." Robbie said, "It _is _his son. I'd want to know."

"If he had known about Dante, he would've wanted to help me take care of him." Tori explained.

"Well, duh," Cat said, "That's the point."

"That _is _the point, Cat. I couldn't let him give up everything for my son."

"_His _son." Robbie corrected.

* * *

"Dude! This is so awesome," Dante's best friend, Mark, said as they waited in the line to get Andre Harris' autograph.

"I'm just glad my mom let me out of the house. She's so paranoid."

"Least she's hot." Though she wasn't that young anymore, Tori still got suggestive looks from men of all ages. Dante rarely brought his friends over, because he "didn't like the way they drooled".

Dante was about to say something, but forgot all about it when they saw Andre Harris.

"Hey, man, what's your name?" Andre asked as Dante handed him a CD.

"Dante." He answered, almost too excited to talk. Andre handed back the CD case. Dante was just about to step aside so Mark could hand Andre poster to sign when Andre stopped him, looking at him like he was a ghost.

"Kid, come here." Andre pointed to the side of the table and Dante looked at Mark, who shrugged.

"Uh, yeah?" Andre stood up and looked the boy up and down.

"What did you say your name was?"

"Dante?"

"Dante what?" Andre asked.

"Dante Jackson." Dante lied, quickly. Andre looked at him for a minute more, but than sat down, still watching Dante from the corner of his eye.

Mark got his poster signed and the boys walked to the exit, Dante texting his mom to pick him up.

"Why'd you tell him your last name was Jackson?" Mark asked.

"I dunno. He was being creepy." Dante said, shrugging.

"So? He's still awesome."

"I don't know why he needed to know my name, anyways."

"He was probably wondering why you look like his mini-me." Mark joked, though it was true. Dante often had people saying he looked like a young Andre Harris.

"Whatever, man." Dante said, shrugging it off. Dante's mom chose that moment to pull up across the street. "Need a ride?" He asked. Mark shook his head as his own mother pulled up.

"Did you have fun?" Tori asked, and even Dante could tell she was slightly distracted.

"Yeah. I got to talk to Andre Harris." Tori looked at her son.

"O-oh yeah?" She said, trying to keep calm. "What did he say?"

"He was kinda weird."

"Weird? Weird how?"

"Kinda like how you're being now." Dante said, giving his mother an odd look. Tori glared at her son. "He kept looking at me and asked me what my name was."

"Did you tell him?" Tori asked.

"Sort of. I told him my name was Dante Jackson." Tori nodded, trying not to look over relieved.

Dante's phone beeped and he checked his texts.

"Mom,"

"Yeah, hun?" She asked.

"How do you know Cat Sharpio?"


	3. Invitations

"Tell me," Dante demanded for the _n_th time that Saturday.

"I love you, baby, but I'm about _thisclose_ to sending you to live with Aunt Trina." Tori said, giving her son a stern look. Dante shuddered at the thought of being with his aunt and his cousins, Tammy and Tasha.

"Why can't you just tell me?"

"I'll tell you that Cam is dead the next time I see him."

"You could've told him to keep his mouth shut." Dante jumped up from his seat at the kitchen table and hugged his mother. "Pleasepleaseplease."

"If I tell you, will you be quiet?"

"I can't promise you that, Mom."

"Close enough." Tori sighed, "The Sharpios were my friends in high school." Dante looked at his mother like she just grew eight more heads.

"Why don't you ever see them?"

"We lost contact after I left school." Tori said, sitting on the counter. Dante looked guilty; he knew that his mother left school because she got pregnant with him.

"Do we have to have the 'it's not your fault' talk again?" Tori asked.

"No." It was silent for a moment before Dante asked, "Where's my dad?"

Tori felt as if she had been punched in the stomach. Dante had only ever asked about his dad once, when he was seven and they had a "family night". Almost all the kids had the standard Mom and Dad pair. Of course, after that, Dante had asked why his dad wasn't with them. She had told them that he didn't need a dad, since she could "love him enough for a mommy and a daddy".

"I don't know, sweetie." Tori lied, convincingly.

"Fine. _Who _is my dad?" Dante asked.

"Why is it so important?" Tori snapped, jumping off the counter and crossing her arms.

"I don't know, Mom." Dante said, sarcastically. "I guess it's not _that _important to know who the other person responsible for my life is."

"Just go get the mail, or something." Tori said, knowing she couldn't win this argument.

"Whatever." Dante said, grabbing the letterbox key and going out the door.

Tori let out a deep breath and glared at her cell phone when it began ringing.

"Hello?" She answered.

"Hey, baby sister!" Trina obviously didn't notice her sister's annoyance and kept talking. "So I have some awesome news."

"What is it?"

"I got a job at Hollywood Arts." Trina said, excitedly, "I'm the new Improv teacher."

"What happened to Sikowitz?" Tori asked. She always loved having Sikowitz as a teacher; Hollywood Arts wouldn't be the same without him.

"I dunno, but I applied and got it!" Of course, Trina wouldn't care about anything but herself.

"Well, that's great, Trina." Dante walked back into the apartment.

"Who's Erw-" Tori waved him off, indicting that she was on the phone. Dante set the mail on the counter and walked out of the kitchen.

"How's Dante?" Trina asked, hearing her nephew speak.

"Dante's fine." Tori checked to see if he'd gone to his room before adding, "He met Andre last night."

"Does he know?"

"No, of course not."

"How'd he meet him?"

"He went to this thing, and Andre was there. I think Andre suspected something, though. Dante said that he was looking at him funny and stuff."

"I don't see why you can't tell _Dante _that he's Andrew's son."

"Andre," Tori corrected. "And, he'd try to contact him." She said, looking through the mail that Dante brought in. Mostly, it was bills and junk mail, but one letter caught her eye.

She opened the envelope, ignoring Trina's annoying chatter:

_We regret to inform you that you are invited to celebrate the life of Erwin Sikowitz._

Tori was too shocked to read the rest of the fancy lettering.

"Trina, did you know that Sikowitz _died_?" Tori asked, interrupting her sister in a long winded speech about Tasha's new hair cut.

"When did you find out?"

"Right now. An invitation for his funeral showed up in the mail."

"What?" Trina said, outraged, "I didn't get one?"

"Trina! This is not about you." Tori opened her laptop and searched Sikowitz's name. Links to articles about Hollywood Arts showed up, but Tori found what she was looking for:

"_Mr. Erwin Sikowitz, a teacher at Hollywood Arts, died last weekend. Sikowitz drank spoiled coconut milk and, when he became ill, he assumed it was the milk giving him 'visions'. It was really bacteria eating away at his stomach._"

Tori hung up the phone without saying good-by to her sister, reading the story over again.

"Who's that?" Tori jumped as Dante pointed at the picture of Sikowitz that accompanied the article.

"Jesus, Dante. Don't do that."

"Who's that?" Dante repeated, still looking at the screen.

"An old friend." Tori gave as a way of explanation. "Guess where you're staying this weekend?" She said, smirking. Dante grimaced.

"Just kill me now."

* * *

"Dante!" Tammy and Tasha, Trina's nine and seven year old daughters hugged their cousin, who pretended to be happy about being at his Aunt's house.

"You can't just take me with you?" He whispered harshly to his mother.

"Nope, sorry." Tori said, smiling, just as Trina came out of the house, with her husband, Scott. "Thanks for letting him stay." She said, embracing her sister and brother-in-law.

"No worries, Tor. We love Dante." Scott said. It always surprised Tori that someone as nice and selfless as Scott could be married to someone like Trina.

Tori exchanged pleasantries with her extended family, then kissed her son good-by.

"Be good, baby."

"I'm angry with you." Dante muttered. Tori ignored this and waved as she backed out of the drive way.

* * *

"I don't understand why I can't go..." Dante complained to his Uncle Scott. Scott had married Trina when Dante was about four, so he had been Dante's "father figure" as long as the boy could remember.

"Hey, she's the boss." Scott said, tossing Dante a soda.

"Do you think my dad's there?" Dante asked suddenly, making Scott choke on his drink. "Maybe that's why she doesn't want me going."

Of course, Trina had told Scott about Dante's father. And, of course, Tori had told him the reason that Dante was staying with them. And, another of course, Dante had guessed correctly.

"That's probably not why." Scott lied, pathetically. He wasn't as good of an actor as his sister-in-law.

"That's it!" Dante said, jumping up. "I have to meet him."

"Why the sudden interest in your dad?" Scott asked.

"It's not 'sudden'; I just haven't said anything because my mom gets all sad every time I ask." Dante explained. "You have to take me to the funeral."

"Your mom isn't-"

"My mom is being ridiculous. I have to meet my dad sometime." Scott was about to protest when Dante gave him a sad look.

"Get in the car." Scott sighed.

* * *

**Hey, guys,**

**For those of you asking for Beck/Jade, it's not going to happen. If that's what you came to this story for, I suggest leaving. **

**I love Beck, and I **_**love**_** Jade, but I don't like them together, so please, no more asking. **


	4. Meetings

Tori pulled into the hotel car garage, and grabbed her bag from the trunk of her car. She knew that she was going to have to face Jade, Beck, and worse, Andre. She didn't know if she could take lying to him, but she knew she didn't want to tell him about Dante; he'd feel terrible that he'd missed out on his own son's life.

She walked into the lobby, checking her phone to see if Dante had texted her to come back and save him.

"Welcome to the Parker-Nichols Hotel, can I get your name?" The perky blond receptionist piped. Tori gave her name and looked around the lobby, looking for a familiar face. She had no idea why the funeral was all the way in Fresno, but it was good to get out of L.A. for a while. She'd be staying here all weekend, something she had mixed feelings about.

Heads turned as a crowd of paparazzi swarmed the front doors. Tori knew that this meant one thing.

"Get the fuck away from me!" Jade West yelled at the cameras. An extremely large man pushed them away so Jade could get in. Jade was holding the hand of her seven year old daughter, Lilith, who looked almost identical to Jade. Tori had read somewhere that Jade's daughter had been fathered by a very well known, very elderly director. Of course, no one but Jade knew for sure.

The last time she had seen Jade, she had been playing a SciFi heroine who saved the entire country from monsters that escaped from a lab. Dante loved it, probably because of her skin tight outfits that no real person could wear while killing mutants.

"Heyyy, Jade." Tori said, figuring she'd get past the hellos. Jade whipped her head around, shocked look pasted on her face.

"Tori?" Jade asked. She approached Tori like she was going to explode.

"Yes, it's me." Tori said, smiling and grabbing her room key from the receptionist, who looked excited to have _the _Jade West in front of her.

"Lenny, check me in." Jade said to the man that had helped her in earlier, handing off Lilith to him. "Where have you been?" Jade asked, pulling Tori into a spot where they couldn't be seen from the large windows.

"Awh, did you miss me?" Tori joked.

"No," Jade said, quickly. "I just couldn't stand your sister. Why didn't you take her with you?" Tori laughed.

"After I graduated, I moved to back to L.A."

"So you've been in L.A. all this time and didn't bother to find me?" Jade said, sounding offended.

"Ha!" Tori said, childishly. "You _did _miss me."

"Oh, please." Jade rolled her eyes and looked grateful when the door opened again. This time, it was Beck.

Of course, Tori couldn't resist the urge to go hug the Canadian-born, extremely handsome man.

"Tori?" Beck said, laughing. "Jesus, I haven't seen you in ages."

"Yeah, yeah. It's been a long time." Jade said, picking up Lilith, who giggled. "Where's your girlfriend?" Ah, forever the jealous one.

"Haven't you read People?" Beck mock-outraged. "We broke up a while ago."

"Oh." Jade said, not hiding her smirk.

* * *

"Toooori!" Cat said, knocking on Tori's door. "Tori! Come on!" Tori jumped up and answered the door. Cat, Robbie, Rex, and the small, curly haired Calvin all stood out in the hallway.

"Let's go, Tori!"

"Go where?" Tori asked.

"We're all going out to dinner."

"Who's we?"

"Us, Jade and her daughter, and Beck." Cat peeked into the room behind Tori before asking, "Where's your son? I wanted to meet him."

"He's staying with Trina." Tori explained, grabbing her purse and shutting the door behind her.

Tori could feel the disapproving looks from Robbie and Cat as they walked down the hall. Obviously, they knew _why _Dante was staying with his aunt.

"You should've brought him." Robbie said.

"Mhm, you can't hide him forever, girl." Rex added. Tori was ready to smack that stupid puppet.

"Mommy, can I push the button?" Calvin asked excitedly when they approached the elevator. Tori was grateful for the interruption.

Cat nodded and smiled at Calvin, who pushed the button and clapped like there was absolutely nothing that could have made him happier. She smiled when she remembered Dante being that young and excited.

* * *

"So what's your plan?" Scott asked his nephew, who looked anxiously at the hotel where he knew his mother was staying at.

"I don't know. I didn't really have one." Dante said. He spotted his mom, and both him and Scott ducked until they thought they were safe.

When he looked back up, he saw what was, undeniably, the Sharpios, Jade West, and Beck Oliver.

"What the hell?" Dante said, under his breath.

"Dante, focus." Scott said, pulling Dante's attention from his mother and her friends.

"I think we should show up after the funeral ends tomorrow. My dad should be there."

"What if he's not?" Scott asked, knowing very well that Dante's father _would _be there.

"Then my mom's gonna be pissed."

* * *

**I'm sorry about not posting all the time. **

**I have a lot on my plate. My parents are getting divorced (don't apologize, I'm happy about this), and I have to get a lot of extra work for school done so I can leave earlier and still get credit. I'll try as best I can, though. **

**Thanks for reading :D **

**-James**


	5. More 'Half Truths'

"So, Tori," Jade said, sitting back down after taking Calvin and Lilith to to small play area of the restaurant. "Did you ever get married?"

"No," Tori answered, taking a sip of her coffee. Though this was the truth, she felt just as guilty as if she had lied. "Never found the right person."

"What about kids?" Robbie asked, even though he knew the answer. Tori gave him a sharp kick under the table.

"No, no kids, either." Tori said, smiling quickly before diving back into her food. Again, she could feel the disproving stares from the Sharpios.

"Hey, there's Andre." Beck pointed to the door. Just like at the hotel, paparazzi swarmed the restaurant entrance. Andre squeezed in, extremely out of breath.

"Andre! Over here!" Cat yelled. Andre spotted them and strode over. When he saw Tori, he paused.

"Hey." Tori said, looking into her lap, instantly regretting coming here.

"I didn't know you'd be here." Andre said, betraying absolutely no emotion as he chose the seat in between Robbie and Beck.

"Yeah." Tori mumbled, immersing herself in her coffee once again.

"Where've you been?"

"Los Angeles." Tori said. "I'm surprised you could even make it. Being on tour and all."

"Yeah, well, I had a thing in L.A. last weekend. I was already in the area when I got the invitation."

"Oh, yeah. I didn't hear you were in town. I would've come by to see you." Tori lied, viciously. If anyone caught it, they didn't mention it.

Just her luck. Tori got stuck in the elevator with the one person she was trying to avoid.

"So how's life been?" Andre asked as the rode up.

"Fine." She said, curtly. "You?"

"Fine. Lots of time on the road, you know?" When it became silent agian, he asked, "So what do you do now?"

"I'm a waitress at this little diner on Seattle Avenue."

"Why? You could've done so much."

"I don't like the attention. Like you guys. It seems like a lot of work." Tori half-lied. She probably hadn't told the whole truth since she got here.

"It's not that bad. Plus, shit wasn't the same after you left Hollywood Arts."

"Let's not talk about me leaving." Tori said, tapping her foot, willing the elevator to go faster. Why did they have to be on the top floor?

"Why not? You never said why you were leaving."

"I told you. I didn't feel comfortable there anymore." The elevator doors rolled open and they stepped out.

"Bullshit." Andre said. Even though his room was down the opposite side of the hallway, he followed Tori, hoping to get an answer.

"It's not bullshit." Tori snapped. "I didn't want to be there anymore, okay, Andre?"

"Then why'd you move all the way to San Fransisco? You could've just went to your old school."

"Leave me alone, Andre." Tori said, getting her room key out of her purse and opening her door.

"It was about that night, then. At Jade's party." Andre said, watching as Tori slipped into the room and attempted to shut the door. He put his hand up, stopping it from closing.

"You didn't have to do it." Andre said, barely above a whisper.

"I know I didn't. I chose to." With that, Andre let her close the door.

_**~FLASHBACK~**_

Sixteen year old Tori Vega had just been dumped. Of course, going to Jade's party, where, obviously, Jade would be wasn't the best plan to cheer here up, but she knew there would be massive amounts of alcohol and she wanted to drown her sadness in tequila and hard lemonade.

Before she could even grab a drink, Andre found her, pulling her into Jade's guest room.

"What the hell are you doing here, Tori?"

"None of your business, Andre." Tori said, moving to the door.

"I thought you were going to be with Mike tonight?" Andre asked.

"Mike's busy at the moment." Tori said, crossing her arms. Andre, being her best friend, understood the double meaning.

"Who was it?" He asked. Tori sighed, looking half relieved, half crushed.

"Some gank from North Ridge." Andre opened his arms and Tori gratefully sunk into them. She wiped away a random tear and gave a heaving sigh. "It's not that I'm upset about us breaking up." Tori said without Andre asking, "I just feel stupid."

"You're anything but stupid, Tor." Andre said, patting his friend's hair.

"Then why did I fall for someone like him?"

"You tell me, girl." Tori took a deep breath, wiped her face, and gave Andre a smile.

"You don't need to be in here, Andre. Go have fun." She gestured to the door, where loud music was being emitted.

"I'm not gonna have fun unless you do, babe." He said, flashing a real smile back at her.

"Thanks, Andre. You're amazing." Tori hugged Andre again, this time with more feeling and less self pity. When she pulled back and looked at him, Tori felt something for Andre that she never realized.

Without another thought, Tori pressed her lips to Andre's, and he did not protest. Getting more heated, Tori pushed him towards the guest bed. The bed, hitting the back of his knees, forced him to sit, Tori still in control.

"Wait," He said, finally getting a grip, "It's not that I don't like you, Tori. But it seems like you're kinda just doing this because,"

"Because I just got dumped?" Tori finished.

"Well,...yeah."

"I am. Partly." Tori said, deciding the truth was better. "But I'm also doing this because it's loooong over due."

_**~END FLASHBACK~**_


	6. Long Overdue

Tori stepped out of the shower the morning of the funeral, wrapping a towel around her and wiping the fog off the mirror. Being with her old friends made her half expect that her optimistic sixteen year old self would be staring back at her. But of course, it wasn't.

There was a knock at the hotel door, and she quickly pulled on an old flannel shirt and some leggings. She opened the door only to feel extremely underdressed. Beck was standing in a black suit, looking handsome as always. Even at thirty, he still had his shaggy dark hair, looking much like an extremely tan, not-as-old Johnny Depp.

"Getting ready for a Garbage concert, there, Tori?" Beck joked. Tori mock-laughed and opened the door wider, suggesting he come in. He obliged, making himself comfortable on one of the overstuffed chairs.

"The funeral isn't for another hour and a half; why are you already dressed?" Tori said, brushing her wet hair.

"I feel cool in a suit." Beck said, shrugging, making Tori laugh. "So Cat told me about Dante." Tori continued with getting ready, pretending she hadn't heard him. "Tori, you should have told me, if not Andre."

"Why would I have told you, Beck? What would you have done?" Tori asked, stepping out of the bathroom. Beck stood up, walking over to her and looking at her straight in the eyes.

"That's a time you could've really used friends." He said, "I know kids can be cruel, and I know you like to think that Jade hates you, but if anyone tried to be an ass to you besides her, they would've woke up sliced to pieces. Plus, I had a nice RV to hit them with." Tori laughed, but shook her head.

"It wasn't that kids at Hollywood Arts would've judged me," Tori explained, "Kids at my new school did that anyways, and I went through with no friends because I was the pregnant girl. Some of them started a rumor that it was Will Smith's baby." Tori shook her head, "It was just that I didn't want Andre to know."

Beck patted her back comfortingly. "That's a hell of a secret to keep from somebody."

* * *

Tori slipped on her black dress, put on her heels and checked her hair and makeup one last time before stepping out her door. Beck was waiting in the lobby for her, offering her a smile. They'd talked for quite a while, her telling him all about Dante and all his accomplishments.

They slipped into a limo outside the hotel, dodging cameras, and followed in by Jade and Lilith.

"Why did you lie about having a kid, Tori?" Jade asked, as soon as the car started rolling.

Beck sighed and rolled his eyes, "Jade, don't-"

"I thought we were friends?" Jade said.

Tori laughed, "You always said we weren't friends."

"I meant that you were too annoyingly cheery, not that we weren't friends." Jade said, waving it off. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"Why was Cat telling everyone?" Tori said, reminding herself to have a stern word or two with Mrs. Shapiro.

"She didn't mean to," Beck defended, "She said something about how it was too bad that I was the only one without kids, and when she realized what she said, she tried to cover it up, but you know Cat."

"Well, what does he look like?" Jade asked, like Tori should've had out pictures of her son as soon as he was brought up. Tori smiled, taking her Pear-Pod out of her purse and showing the lock screen, which was a picture of Tori and Dante last year, at his middle school graduation.

"Oh my god," Jade said, "If you don't want Andre to know that that kid's his, never let him go near him. They're identical."

"Andre's already met him." Tori said, staring longingly at her son's smiling face.

"What?" Jade and Beck said together. That was one detail she'd left out in Beck and her earlier conversation.

"Dante's a big fan of Andre's, and he went to Andre's signing thing in L.A. last weekend." Tori explained. "I think Andre thought it was weird they looked so much alike."

"Well, duh." Lilith piped up, making the adults laugh.

* * *

The group stood awkwardly in the corner of the reception. They'd just watched Sikowitz's body lowered into the ground, and now they had to politely talk to the strange people that he had been acquainted with in life.

Even Sinjin, who Sikowitz always seemed annoyed by, was there. Tori couldn't believe he was thirty; he looked exactly the same as when she'd last seen him.

"Is that a clown?" Tori asked as a man with big shoes and a big red nose passed.

"My uncle was shot by a clown." Calvin piped up, holding onto his father's hand. Tori looked down at the little boy, who stood there like that statement hadn't really meant anything to him.

She looked back up to Robbie, who shrugged.

"It's so weird that he died." Cat said, looking the most comfortable with their present company than anyone else.

"Had to happen sometime." Jade said, pushing Lilith's hair out of her face.

"Wow, that's nice." Beck said, sarcastically, "That would've been a good speech."

"Shut up, Beck," Jade said, starting them arguing, until Andre stopped them.

"You guys are acting like kids." He said, pushing them apart, "Don't make me out you two in separate corners."

"She started it." Beck said, mumbling and crossing his arms.

"Yeah, that's really mature." Tori said, laughing. She was about to grab another drink from the table when she was pulled down under it.

"What the hell?" Pushing her hair out of her face, she saw her brother-in-law staring back at her.

"Tori, I'm really sorry, he made me bring him." Scott said, almost pleading with her.

"For the love of Jesus, tell me you don't mean Dante." Tori said, Scott staring at her apologetically. "Why aren't you out there stopping him?" Tori practically shrieked.

"I can't stop him, I pretty much figured that it'd be easier just to warn you."

"Scott, you idiot, Andre's here. He's gonna figure out." Tori shook her head. "God dammit, now I have to get Andre out of here before him and Dante see each other."

"Tori, maybe you should just-,"

"Shut it, Scott." Tori backed out from under the table, pointing angrily at Scott. She bounced back up, quickly, strangely not attracting attention from the others.

"Hey, Andre, I think I need some air. Wanna go outside with me?" Tori said, a fake smile plastered on her face. She didn't even wait for a reply before grabbing him and running outside.

"Uh, sorry, I thought you were mad at me." Andre said, looking at her oddly as she lit up a cigarette and took a long drag. "I didn't know you smoked." He said as he took her cigarette and mimicked her motions.

"I quit some time ago," Tori explained, "But every once in a while, it's nice to have one."

"It's bad for your voice." Andre said, handing back to her. She laughed, shaking her head.

"I'm a waitress, not a singer. You should be worried about the voice thing."

"You were a singer." Andre corrected. "A good one."

"Not this again, Andre." Tori said, rolling her eyes, watching the smoke curl off his lips.

"I'm just saying." Andre said, "You could still do it."

* * *

Dante had been waiting in the car for Scott to get back for the last ten minutes. He'd gone in saying he was going to see if Tori was actually inside.

Dante finally got fed up with waiting and walked into the building, passing a clown on the way.

He was immediately spotted by his mother's friends.

"Is that Tori's son?" Cat whispered to Robbie.

"Let's find out," Jade said, turning and yelling, "Hey, kid!" Dante looked over, checking if his mom was with them. "Come here." Dante pointed at himself, earning a nod from Jade.

Dante shuffled towards the group of adults, trying not to show his excitement. Not only was he going to meet his dad, but he was also talking to some of his favorite actors.

"Are you Tori's bastard son?" Jade asked. Beck nudged her arm. "What? It's a legitimate question."

"Tori's my mom, yeah." Dante answered, first looking at Beck, then down at Jade. "How do you know her?" He asked.

"High school." Beck answered. "She said you weren't coming."

Dante's face heated up. "She doesn't know I'm here." He explained. "I…I came because I think my dad might be here."

"He is." Cat piped up, also earning a Beck nudge.

"Tori didn't want him to know." Beck muttered to her. Cat quietly apologized.

"Do you guys know who he is?" Dante asked, excitedly. The group all looked at their feet nervously. Except Jade, who smiled.

"Obviously, Andre." She answered. Even though Dante had considered this answer ever since he'd found out his mother had famous friends, he didn't really think it could be true.

"Andre Harris is my dad?" He asked, "For real?" Beck sighed, seeing the mixture of excitement and anger on the young boy's face.

"Yeah," Beck said, pulling Dante aside. "Don't be mad at your mom, kid."

"Why shouldn't I be?" Dante said, his excitement ebbing away.

"She did what she thought was best for your father and you. So he could live his dream, and you wouldn't have to grow up in the spotlight."

"She could've told me, at least." Dante said, trying not to pout in front of _the _Beck Oliver.

"Like you wouldn't have tried to find him anyways?" Beck said. Dante sighed.

"Can you at least tell me where my parents are?" Dante asked. Beck pointed to the door that Tori had dragged Andre out of. "Thanks, Mr. Oliver." Dante said with a small half smile.

"Beck." Beck corrected, patting his friends' son on the back.

Dante took a deep breath and stepped towards the door. This is the moment he'd waited his entire life for. He was finally going to meet his dad. Well, he'd already met his dad, but that didn't count.

He pushed open the heavy door, into a back alley. Andre Harris and his mother stood, laughing and sharing a cigarette.

Tori's face froze in fear and Andre looked at him sideways. "Mom," Dante started, interrupted by Andre.

"Hey," He said, pointing the cigarette at Dante, "You're the kid from the music exhibit." Andre's eyes widened in realization. He looked from Dante to Tori, who was still frozen.

"Oh my god," Andre said, his hand going over his mouth. "Oh my fucking god." He turned back to Tori, his eyes angry. "When were you going to tell me, Tori?"

"Andre, I'm so sorry-," Tori began, grabbing Andre's arm. He pulled it away, roughly.

"You kept my own kid away from me?"

"I thought it was best-,"

"You should've let me decide, Tori." He turned his back completely to Tori, facing his son. "What's your name again, kid?"

"Dante Vega." Dante introduced, truthfully this time.

"I'm Andre Harris. Your dad, I guess." Andre said, shaking his hand. Dante could barely look at his mom, who was crying, her hand over her mouth. "I'd talk to you more, but I'm having issues with your mother." Andre pulled a card out of his wallet. "You can call me later, kay, kid?" Dante nodded.

Andre walked back inside the building, without saying another word to Tori.


End file.
